The Guahan Academy Charter School has been doing what it can to address outstanding obligations and payment issues.

Last week, KUAM reported on an Office of Accountability appeals claim by Rex International seeking payment for constructing the GACS campus.

According to GACS Board of Trustees Audit Committee Chairman Al Erguiza, the charter school has been addressing their funding issues and that their legal counsel is managing the larger debts, like the one with Rex. Erguiza says the holdup is due to technicalities that are causing delays in the Guam Department of Education's review of the procurement contract with the construction company.

"We're not trying to avoid the issues in paying all our vendors," he said. "There's a payment plan and confirmation letters in which some of the vendors--or most of the vendors approved already."

Erguiza says that the issue is not a lack of funding. Rather, it is an issue of obtaining the monies. He says GACS has been transparent with all the challenges and that Rex International is aware. However, due to the lengthy timeline for remittance, the contractor is using the OPA appeal as a mechanism to expedite the process. the audit chair says the money is there the problem is the school can't access it without GDOE's approval.

"By law, GDOE has the right to review our procurement procedures," Erguiza said. "The question is they went beyond the scope of review, which also further delayed the payment. One of the biggest issues was, as an auditor you're supposed to provide some assistive solutions, and we always asked for that. However, they just cite the law. But there was no recommendation as to what can be done."

Erguiza pointed out that GDOE does not have the authority to withhold the funding for GACS and a loophole in the review process of the charter school's procurement has stifled the flow of funds. The loophole being that GDOE has not approved all of the contracts for procurement nor did they provide any viable solutions for the school to get approval. For now, GACS will have to work with the existing funds they have.

GDOE spokesperson Isa Baza confirmed the agency is tasked with reviewing and validating charter school funding.

"The charter school law also does not allow for public funds to be used for charter school capital improvement projects," she said. "The GDOE will not validate requests that do not comply with local law. Due to this legal requirement, the Rex International invoice was not validated. The GDOE does not withhold charter school funding, and only has the authority to verify charter school invoices and procurement records to support those invoices. The Department of Administration has authority over charter school funding, and can make the decision on whether or not to release funds."